FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   >>  
I'd like to say a word to you before we separate," said the man who had trapped them. "I guess we may not meet again until you see me on the stand in the courthouse. I'll give you something to think over between now and then. You know me now for what I am. At last I can put my cards on the table. I am Birdy Edwards of Pinkerton's. I was chosen to break up your gang. I had a hard and dangerous game to play. Not a soul, not one soul, not my nearest and dearest, knew that I was playing it. Only Captain Marvin here and my employers knew that. But it's over to-night, thank God, and I am the winner!" The seven pale, rigid faces looked up at him. There was unappeasable hatred in their eyes. He read the relentless threat. "Maybe you think that the game is not over yet. Well, I take my chance of that. Anyhow, some of you will take no further hand, and there are sixty more besides yourselves that will see a jail this night. I'll tell you this, that when I was put upon this job I never believed there was such a society as yours. I thought it was paper talk, and that I would prove it so. They told me it was to do with the Freemen; so I went to Chicago and was made one. Then I was surer than ever that it was just paper talk; for I found no harm in the society, but a deal of good. "Still, I had to carry out my job, and I came to the coal valleys. When I reached this place I learned that I was wrong and that it wasn't a dime novel after all. So I stayed to look after it. I never killed a man in Chicago. I never minted a dollar in my life. Those I gave you were as good as any others; but I never spent money better. But I knew the way into your good wishes and so I pretended to you that the law was after me. It all worked just as I thought. "So I joined your infernal lodge, and I took my share in your councils. Maybe they will say that I was as bad as you. They can say what they like, so long as I get you. But what is the truth? The night I joined you beat up old man Stanger. I could not warn him, for there was no time; but I held your hand, Baldwin, when you would have killed him. If ever I have suggested things, so as to keep my place among you, they were things which I knew I could prevent. I could not save Dunn and Menzies, for I did not know enough; but I will see that their murderers are hanged. I gave Chester Wilcox warning, so that when I blew his house in he and his folk were in hiding. There was many a crime that I cou
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   >>  



Top keywords:
killed
 

joined

 

thought

 
Chicago
 

things

 

society

 

dollar

 

learned

 

stayed

 

valleys


reached

 
minted
 

Menzies

 
prevent
 
Baldwin
 

suggested

 

murderers

 

hanged

 

hiding

 

Chester


Wilcox

 

warning

 

pretended

 

wishes

 

worked

 
infernal
 

Stanger

 

councils

 

chosen

 

Pinkerton


Edwards

 

dangerous

 
Captain
 

Marvin

 

employers

 

playing

 

nearest

 

dearest

 

trapped

 

separate


courthouse
 
believed
 

Freemen

 

looked

 

unappeasable

 
hatred
 

winner

 
chance
 
Anyhow
 

relentless